Compound railroad-rail.



Patented Mar. 19,1918.

m MN W. G. COUGHLIN.

COMPOUND-RAILROAD RAIL. APPITIACATION FILED MAR. 3, I916. RENEWED OCT. 13.1911.

FATENT @FFECE;

COMIEOUND; RAILROAD-RAIL.

Specification of Letters. Patent.

Patented Mar. 19,1918,

App llcation filed Mamas, 1916, Serial 110181315. Renewed October 13, 1917.. Serial No. 196,553.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WVILLIAM G. COUGH- LIN, a citizen of the United States, and resi dent of Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Compound Railroad-Rails, of which the 01- lowing isa specification.

This invention relates to railroad rails and particularly to compound rails in which the head or wearing portion of the rail is. detachable from the continuous supporting member so that it may be removed and ref newedi. without: disturbing the supporting mem It is, the obj ectofthi's inventionto provide a rail of this class which is of simple construction, which possesses great strength and stability and which. reduces thewearing action of the rail on the tie to a minimum.

The invention will be described in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure 1 is a side view of my improved rail mounted, upon ties, as in a section of roadbed; and

Fig. 2 isa cross-sectional view of the same. enlarged.

Referring to the drawing, A indicates the head member of the compound rail and B the base member. The member A comprises the, rail head 10, a tongue 20 extending downwardly and an intermediate. neck 21; The base member B. comprises a base plate 11 and head supporting webs 12, 13, which are integral with. the base plate and which extend convergingly upward from lines about midway between the center and the edges of the base plate. The upper portions of the webs 1'2 and 1-3; are thickened and constitute shoulders 14 and 15, respectively, having upper faces 16" and 17 arranged at substantially right angles t the planes of the webs 12 and 13, respectively, and forming bearing surfaces on which corresponding lower surfaces 18 and 19 of therail head 10 are adapted to rest when the rail head seated on, the'supporting base The shoulders 14 and 1 5 are separated by sparrow-slice nd? h cl v ard r 1 1% se member an be. se ure h 9 projecting tongue 20 is adapted to be held between the shoulders when the rail head is in place. The thickness of the neck 21 is approximately equal to the widthof; the slot between the. shoulders 14; and l5jwhile the tongue below the neck is thicker.

The upright webs 12 and 13' are sufii clentl'y resilient to allow the shoulders 14: and 15 to spring apart a sufiicient distance to permit the passage of the tongue 20 in seating the rail head on the base' member, and to causethe shouldersto spring bac nito normal position to engage, the neck 21 after the thicker portion-haspassedthrough Considerable force isrequired to seat or un seat the rail head in this manner, which be applied by any well known method, as by hammers, clamps, etc.

The head, 10 might be maintained in position on the support by the locking action of the shoulders 14 and 15' alone but to render the structure secure and to prevent vibration'and creeping of the head relatively to the support, a series ofhorizont'ally disposed bolts 22 are provided which are used to draw the upper portionsfof the Webs l2 and 13 together to firmly clamp the tongue 20. In, order that the heads 23 of the bolts, and the nuts 24, may bear on parallel faces. portions 25. and 26. of the outer surfaces of the webs 12 and 13 are vertically disposed, to provide such bearing surfaces, The usual nut and bolt locks, 27 and 28, maybe used to prevent loosening of the bolts.

To take care of lateral thrusts, which would otherwise tend tobreak off the tongue 20, the supporting web 13, is preferably continued upwardly for a short distance to form a flange 29 which extends approximately half way up the side of the rail head 10; This flange-29 forms an effective. lateral support for the head especially on curves, where the side thrust is greatest.

The base member is preferably made in lengths equal to, the length of the head rails, which is usually. thirty feet. and when the track is laid the-head and base members? are arranged to breakjoints, theresultbeing a strong; continuous rail.

cross ties by any of the methods at present in use, such as by screw spikes, nail spikes, clamps, etc., driven through the outwardly projecting portions of the base or suitably engaging them.

The base member not being'subject to wear or impingement of the wheels, is not subject or liable to fracture, and the large area of supporting surface for the head directly under the head reduces liability to fractures which may be .inducedby scams or other defects, and if fracture in the head should occur the disrupted pieces will be held securely in place. Because of the manner of support of the rail head, rail heads of harder and more durable material can be used, resulting in economy from their longer wear. Renewals of the rail heads can be made without disturbing the base or support on the cross ties, thus avoiding the removal or replacement of the fastenings, and thereby prolonging the life of the cross ties.

In my compound rail a greater area of support to the rail head is obtained than it is practicable to secure with a T-rail and because of the inclined flanges of the supporting member the weight or load is more uni-.

formly and widely distributed over the base of the support and thence over a greater area of the cross ties than itis possible to accomplish with the T-rails now commonly used. i

To sum up the advantages of my invention, it will be apparent that the'rail head has a large area of direct support on the shoulders 14, 15 and great lateral support due to engagement of the tongue 20 by the shoulders and to the flange 29.

7 Lateral stability isalso increased by making the outer bearing surface 17 slightly higher than the inner bearing surface 16, thus sloping the tread or upper surface of the rail slightly toward the center of the track to counteract the outward thrust of the wheels. The outwardly flaring supporting webs distribute the load over a wide area, the base 11 being preferably about twice as wide as the distance between the lower parts of the webs. lfhisdistributes the loads over a large area of theties and tie plates may be dispensed with without detriment to wooden ties.

- Having described the invention what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters-Patent is, i

1. A compound rail comprising a head member and a base member, the head member comprising a head proper having downto the under's'urfaces of the head and. t0 the tongue and the lower edges of which are integral with a base plate adapted to rest on the ties, the said base plate connecting the webs and extending laterally beyondthe webs on both sides. 7 I

2. A compound rail comprising a head member and a base member, the head member comprising a head proper having downwardly and inwardly inclinedunder surfaces 18, 19, terminating in a downwardly projecting central tongue having a reduced neck andan enlarged lower portion and the base member having upwardly and inwardly converging webs, the upperedges of which are fitted to the under surfaces of the head and to the tongue and the'lowe'r edges of which are integral with a base plate adapted to rest on the tie, the said base plate connecting the webs and extending laterally beyond the webs on both sides.

3. A compound rail comprising a head member and a'base member, the head member comprising a head proper having downwardly and inwardly inclined under surfaces 18, 19, terminating in a downwardly project- 'ing central tongue and the base member hav ing upwardly and inwardly converging webs, the upper edges of which are fitted to the under'surfaces of the head and to the tongue and the lower edges of which are integral with a base plate adapted to rest on the ties, the said base plate connecting the webs and extending laterally beyond the wardly and inwardlyinclined under surfaces 18, 19, terminating in a downwardly projecting central tongue and the base memher having upwardly and inwardly converging webs, the upper edges of which are fitted to the under surfaces of the head and to the tongue and the lower edges of which are integral with a base plate adapted to rest on the ties, the said base plate. connecting the webs and extending laterally beyond the webs on both sides, the upper inclined surface of the outer web being slightly higher than the corresponding surface of the inner web, whereby the railhead is canted inward to assist in resisting the lateral thrust of the car wheels.

5. A compound rail comprising a head member and a base member, the head member comprising a head proper'having down- Wardly and inwardly inclined under surfaces 18, 19, terminating in a downwardly projecting central tongue and the base memher having upwardly and inwardly converging webs, the upper edges of which are fitted portions of their outer surfaces in parallel to the under surfaces of the head and to the Vertical planes and being perforated through tongue and the lower edges of Which are insaid planes to receive bolts, in combination 10 tegral With a base plate adapted to rest on With suitable bolts and nuts for securing the ties, the said base plate connecting the said head and base members together. I Webs and extending laterally beyond the In testimony whereof I aflix my signature. Webs on both sides, the said Webs having WILLIAM G. COUGHLIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by, addressing the Commissioner of Patenta. Washington, D. C. 

